Bryan Baker, Brian Rogers, Alexander Shlemenko and Vitor Vianna face off in Middleweight Semifinals & Gracie Returns as Daniel Gracie enters the Bellator Cage
CHICAGO, Ill. (September 23, 2011) — There are many story lines and plenty on the line as Bellator heads back to Atlantic City on Saturday, October 15th as Caesars Atlantic City presents Bellator 54 at Boardwalk Hall, which will feature a super fight between Bellator Bantamweight Champion Zack “Fun Size” Makovsky and former UFC fighter Ryan Roberts. Also, coming off three out of four finishes in the quarterfinal round, the Bellator Middleweight Tournament continues as Bryan Baker takes on Vitor Vianna and Brian Rogers faces off against Alexander Shlemenko in the semifinals LIVE on MTV2 and in commercial-free HD on EPIX at 9 p.m. ET / 8 p.m. CT.
Tickets can be purchased now at the Boardwalk Hall Box Office, all Ticketmaster locations, on Ticketmaster.com, by calling 800-736-1420 and at Bellator.com.
Makovsky enters the bout riding a seven-fight win streak and holds a spotless 5-0 record with Bellator. The 135-pound strap holder was nothing but impressive on his way to collecting the Bellator Bantamweight World Title, securing three unanimous decision victories over Nick Mamalis, Bryan Goldsby and Ed West. Makovsky saw his last action at Bellator 41, where he collected his first knockout victory over Strikeforce veteran Chad Robichaux.
The Bellator Middleweight tournament is heating up as Bryan Baker, Brian Rogers and Alexander Shlemenko all earned finishes in their quarterfinal matches. Dangerous Brazilian Vitor Vianna had his hands full in a split-decision victory against Sam Alvey, but all four men look to be the one that’s next in line for Hector Lombard’s middleweight strap.
The action keeps rolling on with a night of featured fights loaded with local talent LIVE on Spike.com starting at 7 p.m. ET. New York’s Daniel Gracie will bring his legendary bloodline back to the Bellator cage as he makes his middleweight debut against Pennsylvania’s own Duane Bastress. Gracie was featured in Bellator’s inaugural Light Heavyweight Tournament, and will try his hand at middleweight for the first time on October 15th.
Karl “Psycho” Amoussou will step back into the Bellator cage, taking on submission specialist Joey Kirwan in a middleweight affair. Amoussou made his promotional debut at Bellator 45, and will be looking to impress in front of an always lively Boardwalk Hall crowd. Amoussou now calls Philadelphia home, and trains with legendary fight instructor Brad Daddis.
Tim Carpenter will also make his return to the Bellator cage after falling to Christian M’Pumbu in the Season 4 Light Heavyweight Tournament. Fighting out of Philadelphia, Carpenter will be looking for victory when he takes on Bellator veteran Jamall “The X Factor” Johnson. Johnson made headlines this summer as the Philadelphia native was filmed training Hollywood superstar Will Smith at Brazen MMA in Philadelphia. Click here to see TMZ video.
The night will also feature a highly-anticipated women’s fight between Andria Caplan and Adrienne Seiber. Caplan comes to Bellator after training extensively at Daddis Fight Camps while compiling a 3-1 amateur record. Seiber, an Illinois police officer, will be making her Bellator debut.
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator
Bellator 54 is presented by Caesars Atlantic City from Boardwalk Hall on October 15th. Tickets can be purchased now on Ticketmaster.com and Bellator.com.
